Phase2 Technology is hiring: Technical Director, Texas Open-Source Initiative (T

Overview

Job Posting Title: Technical Director, Texas Open-Source Initiative (TOSI)

Hiring Department: Lyndon B Johnson School of Public Affairs

Position Open To: All Applicants

Weekly Scheduled Hours: 40

FLSA Status: Exempt

Earliest Start Date: Immediately

Position Duration: Expected to Continue

Location: UT MAIN CAMPUS

About the University

The University of Texas at Austin is a major research university with a mission to foster positive social change, technological advancement, and economic progress. This posting is for the Technical Director role within the Texas Open-Source Initiative (TOSI), a component of the Clements-Strauss Intelligence Studies Project.

Responsibilities

Technical Leadership & Operations

• Ability to translate complex technical concepts for variable audiences, think strategically about technology adoption and implementation and able to project manage for multi-stakeholder initiatives
• Oversee and maintain the initiative's technical infrastructure, including secure research environments, data storage systems, and specialized OSINT tools
• Develop, implement, and socialize technical standards and best practices for research and digital investigations
• Ensure compliance with university data governance, privacy, and security policies
• Manage relationships with open-source communities and government partners

Research & Project Management

• Ability to translate complex technical concepts for variable audiences, strategic thinking about technology adoption and implementation, project management skills for multi-stakeholder initiatives
• Collaborate with faculty on complex technical investigations requiring advanced OSINT methodologies
• Provide technical guidance and support for student research projects across disciplines
• Develop methodologies for reproducible, ethically conducted digital research
• Coordinate with the broader UT community and external partners including NGOs, academic institutions, and government agencies

Educational & Training Leadership

• Teach two courses in the Masters of National Security curriculum, such as Intelligence Analysis and Digital Investigations, Emerging Technologies and National Security
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, experience presenting to academic, governmental, and public audiences and ability to work effectively with interdisciplinary teams
• Design and deliver technical workshops and training programs for students and faculty
• Mentor graduate students and postdocs conducting technical research
• Organize public engagement events
• Create educational resources and SOPs

Strategic Development

• Strong commitment to research ethics and responsible disclosure practices, understanding of academic integrity and publication standards, awareness of legal and ethical constraints in digital investigations
• Contribute to grant writing and fundraising efforts for initiative expansion
• Identify emerging technologies and methodologies relevant to open-source intelligence
• Build partnerships with industry, government, and academic institutions
• Represent the initiative at conferences and professional meetings
• Advise on ethical frameworks for digital investigations

Required Qualifications

• PhD in Computer Science, Information Science, Digital Forensics, Political Science with heavy quantitative background, or related technical field, OR Master\'s degree with 5+ years of relevant professional experience
• Demonstrated experience with open-source intelligence tools and methodologies

Preferred Qualifications

• Proficiency in Python, R, or similar languages for data analysis and tool development
• Experience with forensic analysis tools and methodologies for digital evidence
• Knowledge of GIS software, satellite imagery analysis, location intelligence
• Advanced skills in statistical analysis, data visualization, metadata analysis, and large dataset manipulation
• Understanding of web scraping, API development, and database management
• Knowledge of operational security, anonymization techniques, and secure research practices
• Deep understanding of social media platforms, their APIs, and data collection methodologies, experience with image and video analysis tools for verification and forensic analysis, knowledge of network analysis and relationship mapping techniques, understanding of information warfare, disinformation, and content manipulation detection

Salary Range

$100,000 + depending on qualifications

Working Conditions

• Hybrid work arrangement with flexibility for remote work
• Occasional travel for conferences, training, and collaborative projects
• Typical office environment.
• Repetitive use of keyboard

Required Materials

• Resume/CV
• 3 work references with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor
• Letter of interest
• Optional: Portfolio of OSINT-related projects or tools developed

Important for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers: You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure thatALLRequired Materials have been uploaded. Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.

Important for Current university employees and contingent workers:As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply. This information will be pulled in to your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questionspresented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) that were noted above

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Legal & Compliance

Employment Eligibility: Regular staff who have been employed in their current position for the last six continuous months are eligible for openings being recruited for through University-Wide or Open Recruiting, to include both promotional opportunities and lateral transfers. Staff who are promotion/transfer eligible may apply for positions without supervisor approval.

Retirement Plan Eligibility: The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.

Background Checks: A criminal history background check will be required for finalist(s) under consideration for this position.

Equal Opportunity Employer: The University of Texas at Austin is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, religion, or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions.

Pay Transparency: UT Austin will not discriminate against employees or applicants who inquire about pay; employees with access to compensation information must follow applicable policies.

E-Verify: The University uses E-Verify to check work authorization. The university’s program details and required posters are provided here for reference.

Compliance: Employees may be required to report violations of law under Title IX and the Clery Act; resources are provided for reporting and compliance information is available.